Merck to develop cancer treatments alongside ICR and Wellcome Trust

Merck has announced it is to work with the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and Wellcome Trust as it seeks to develop new cancer treatments.

The German company's Merck Serono unit will collaborate with the two UK organisations in order to identify inhibitors of tankyrase – an enzyme of the poly (ADP-ribose) and polymerase (PARP) family. 

Although financial details of the arrangement have not yet been revealed, it is believed Merck will make milestone payments as well as paying royalties.

Andree Blaukat, Merck Serono's head of translational innovation platform oncology, said: "We aim to harness the already well-advanced tankyrase programmes [both in-house and at ICR] and ultimately translate these into novel treatment options for cancer patients."

In addition, Dr Blaukat noted the company will seek to leverage existing scientific knowledge at both sites regarding the role the 'Wnt pathway' plays in signalling transduction for tumour growth.

The Wellcome Trust's presence is considered to be an endorsement of Merck Serono and ICR's scientific data.